蒙大拿州联邦参议员四人辩论在博兹曼举行：缺席投票开启之际，候选人就住房、医保与伊朗战争交锋
（博兹曼综合讯）蒙大拿州联邦参议员选战周日（10月11日）迎来首场电视辩论：共和党候选人库尔特·阿尔梅（Kurt Alme）、民主党候选人阿拉尼·班克黑德（Alani Bankhead）、无党派候选人塞思·博德纳（Seth Bodnar）与自由党候选人凯尔·奥斯汀（Kyle Austin）齐聚博兹曼（Bozeman）菲尔德与溪流旅馆（Field and Stream Lodge），就住房危机、医保、经济与伊朗战争等议题正面交锋。据 MontanaRightNow 报道，辩论由蒙大拿广播协会与大蒙大拿基金会联合主办，沙漠山广播公司总裁兼首席执行官卡梅伦·麦克斯韦尔（Cameron Maxwell）主持，来自四家蒙大拿广播公司的记者组成提问团，其中包括 Nonstop Local 的本·温曼（Ben Wineman）。
本次竞选争夺的是一个开放的联邦参议员席位，四人中的胜者将在11月3日大选中脱颖而出。辩论恰逢缺席选票陆续寄往选民，选战正式进入白热化阶段。
住房问题成为全场共识度最高的议题。四位候选人一致承认蒙大拿正面临住房危机，但在解决路径上分歧明显。博德纳说：“这是一场绝对的危机，我走到哪里都听到选民提起。”他主张联邦层面采取行动，激励住房供给扩张，并推动分区与建筑规范改革。阿尔梅则把矛头指向联邦开支与建造成本，主张削减开支、降低建筑成本和房贷利率，“让辛勤工作的蒙大拿家庭把更多工资留在口袋里付房租”，同时削减监管、建造更多住房。班克黑德主张让建筑企业更深地参与监管与立法过程。
辩论中段火药味渐浓。独立候选人博德纳直接向共和党候选人阿尔梅发难，质疑其在伊朗战争、总统忠诚度以及国会在军事行动决策中角色上的立场。博德纳认为，当国家走向战争，参议员有责任要求明确的理由与战略，而不是一味追随党派领导层。
阿尔梅则打出财政履历牌。他说：“其他候选人说他们会控制华盛顿的开支，我平衡过预算，我已准备好去华盛顿再做一次。”阿尔梅曾任联邦检察官，并担任过州长詹福尔特政府的预算主任。
据悉，四位候选人还将于10月19日在米苏拉（Missoula）再辩一场。此外，特朗普总统定于10月14日（周三）前往卡利斯佩尔（Kalispell），为蒙大拿州西部国会选区的共和党候选人亚伦·弗林特（Aaron Flint）站台助选。
Four Candidates Square Off in Montana U.S. Senate Debate in Bozeman as Absentee Ballots Go Out
(BOZEMAN, Mont.) — Montana's U.S. Senate race held its first televised debate on Sunday (Oct. 11): Republican Kurt Alme, Democrat Alani Bankhead, independent Seth Bodnar and Libertarian Kyle Austin met at the Field and Stream Lodge in Bozeman, clashing over the housing crisis, health care, the economy and the war in Iran. According to MontanaRightNow, the debate was hosted by the Montana Broadcasters Association and the Greater Montana Foundation, moderated by Cameron Maxwell, president and CEO of Desert Mountain Broadcasting, with a panel of Montana journalists from four broadcast companies, including Nonstop Local's Ben Wineman, asking the questions.
The race is for an open U.S. Senate seat, with the winner to be decided in the Nov. 3 general election. The debate came as absentee ballots were heading to voters, marking the start of the campaign's decisive stretch.
Housing drew the broadest agreement of the night. All four candidates acknowledged Montana faces a housing crisis but differed sharply on solutions. "This is an absolute crisis, I hear about it everywhere I go," Bodnar said, calling for federal action to incentivize housing supply expansion and zoning and code reform. Alme pointed to federal spending and construction costs, arguing for reining in spending, lower construction costs and lower mortgage rates "so hard-working Montanan families can keep more of their paycheck in their pocket to pay the rent," alongside cutting regulations to build more houses. Bankhead called for giving construction companies a deeper role in regulation and lawmaking.
The exchanges sharpened mid-debate when Bodnar, the independent, challenged Alme over the Iran war, presidential loyalty and the role of Congress in decisions about military action. Bodnar argued that when the country goes to war, senators have a responsibility to demand a clear justification and strategy rather than simply follow their party's leadership.
Alme played his fiscal record. "Other candidates say they'll rein in Washington spending. I balanced a budget, and I'm ready to go to Washington and do it again," he said. Alme is a former federal prosecutor and past budget director for the Gianforte Administration.
The four candidates are scheduled to debate again in Missoula on Oct. 19. Separately, President Donald Trump is set to visit Kalispell on Wednesday, Oct. 14, to campaign for Republican Aaron Flint in Montana's Western Congressional District race.
图片来源：图：位于博兹曼的蒙大拿州立大学蒙大拿楼（辩论举办地校园地标）。摄影：Leaflet，CC BY-SA 3.0，来源：Wikimedia Commons
